What are the causes of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome?
Disease description:
My older sister had mice at home recently and was bitten while trying to catch them. After being bitten, she developed a fever and went to the hospital for examination, where she was diagnosed with hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome. I would like to know what causes hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome?
Doctor's answer (1)
Dr. Yang Ziqi
Hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome, also known as epidemic hemorrhagic fever, is an infectious disease caused by hantavirus. Its main causes are as follows:
1. **Viral infection:** Caused by hantavirus, a virus transmitted mainly by rodents (such as house mice, field mice, etc.).
2. **Routes of transmission:** Primarily through direct contact, such as touching items contaminated by rodent bodily fluids, and possibly via respiratory transmission.
3. **Pathological process:** After entering the human body, the virus circulates in the bloodstream and replicates in tissues such as vascular endothelial cells, bone marrow, liver, and spleen, leading to viremia. Subsequently, the virus directly damages body cells, causing multi-organ injury, especially to the kidneys, characterized by damage to the glomerular capillary basement membrane, coagulation dysfunction, and thrombocytopenia, which can lead to hemorrhagic symptoms.
4. **Clinical manifestations:** Patients often initially present with mild fever, gastrointestinal discomfort, or upper respiratory tract infection symptoms. This may be followed by a hypotensive shock phase characterized by decreased blood pressure and rapid breathing. Afterwards, patients may experience an oliguric phase, a polyuric phase, and finally a convalescent phase.
